Millions of patients are coupled to intravenous and/or oxygen tubing and machines either as part of post-surgical administration of medicinal therapy or for routine delivery of intravenously delivered drugs or oxygen supply. As is known in the art, intravenous delivery of drug compounds typically includes an intravenous pump and a tubing that is operably coupled thereto. Similarly, patient oxygen typically has a oxygen cylinder source that provides a supply of oxygen to a patient via tubing. Common insertion of the intravenous tubing can include but not be limited to subclavian taps or similar wherein a patient intravenous tubing is coupled to the aforementioned either continuously or temporarily as part of a drug treatment administration program.
The utilization of intravenous therapy can create physical challenges for a patient. Even only being operably coupled to the intravenous pump for a few hours results in physical limitations due to the requirement of cord management. Typically intravenous pumps are supplied with a substantial length of intravenous tubing to allow a patient a certain degree of movement. Supplying the typical length of intravenous tubing results in potential issues such as but not limited to tangling and kinking wherein the intravenous tubing can become entangled with various articles presenting risk for the patient operably coupled thereto. Patients operably coupled to medical oxygen face similar challenges to those coupled to intravenous tubing wherein the management of the tubing can be cumbersome.
Accordingly, there is a need for a medical tubing management apparatus that provides control and dispensing of medical tubing so as to provide improved management of the tubing while being operably coupled to a patient.